RE: Protect millions more kids from these chemicals

[Consumer Reports]   Friend, help protect kids from harmful chemicals by joining our effortÂto get toxic dyes out of food served at your local schools. California just became the first state to ban these chemicals in school lunches – now we need all kids to get these same protections! [Sign our petition]( to the nation’s largest school lunch suppliers to do the right thing, and remove these chemical dyes from the food they serve all children. It’s an easy thing to do to protect our kids from these health risks!  [Sign the Petition »](  Thanks again for all you do make our food safer for all families. And don't forget to share the petition with friends and family to amp up the pressure on these companies. Meg BohneConsumer Reports _________________________________________________________________ Dear Friend: It’s hard enough these days to choose food free of toxic chemicals for your family. But it’s another thing for giant food corporations to serve these chemicals to our children in public school lunches. Consumer Reports just helped pass a landmark law in California to ban six harmful chemical food dyes in public school food. Now, we need your voice to make sure all kids in the U.S. have these same protections from unnecessary and harmful chemicals. Join us in pressuring the nation’s largest school lunch suppliers – Aramark, Sodexo and Chartwells – [to remove these chemicals from the food they serve to all our children]( Every kid deserves the same shot at a healthier future.  [Sign the Petition »](  California’s new law bans six harmful food dyes – Red Dye No. 40, Yellow Dye No. 5, Yellow Dye No. 6, Blue Dye No. 1, Blue Dye No. 2 and Green Dye No. 3 – from school lunches and snacks in the state. Recent studies found these dyes put some kids at higher risk of hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral issues that interfere with learning. And one, Red Dye 40, has been linked to cancer. Despite these risks, the safety of many of these dyes have not been reevaluated by the FDA since the 1970s and 80s. The reality is, eliminating these dyes would not mean banning any food or drinks in the national lunch program. Instead, it would require the giant food suppliers to substitute natural alternatives to these dyes – which are used primarily to make food more colorful – with things like beet or pomegranate juice. Ensuring school food is free of these chemicals is important for our nation’s children, since kids have lower tolerance levels to chemical exposure than adults, and are especially vulnerable as their bodies are still developing. And with so many U.S. students relying on school meals as their main source of nutrition, it’s critical these chemicals don’t impact their ability to learn. Let’s make sure all students across the nation are served healthier food. [Tell the three largest school lunch providers to commit to not using chemical dyes in school food.](  [Sign the Petition »](  Thank you for taking action. And please share this message with parents and others who will join you in calling for safer school foods. We'll be back in touch about next steps and more ways to get involved! Thank you,Meg BohneConsumer Reports [Unsubscribe from Consumer Reports action alerts.]( © 2022 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 [Contact Consumer Reports](